Page 106 of The Musician and the Monster

“Go back to Teneboure,” he continued, ignoring her. “Forget all this. Live a good life with your family.”

She had to be safe and far from here. He could accept whatever fate awaited him. After the harm he’d caused and the fool he’d been as a youth, he deserved whatever future the Goddess dealt. But if the worst happened, if only death and despair awaited him, he could face it if he knew she was out of harm’s way first.

Ceridwen slammed a fist against his shoulder. “No, do you not listen?” She shoved him hard and stepped away. “I’m already here, and I’m not leaving. I cannot now anyway.”

His heart skipped a beat. “What? Why not?”

“The king…” She swallowed, pausing and weighing her words. But Drystan only saw red. If he hurt her, if he’d found out what she meant to him and had done something… His beast growled within him, a bit of the sound slipping through and causing Ceridwen’s eyes to fly wide.

“He asked me to play at a midwinter party in two days,” she hurried on. “My absence would not go unnoticed.”

Drystan's jaw clenched. “When?”

“Moments ago.”

Drystan turned and slammed his fist into a nearby wall, cracking the plaster. “Damn it!”

If only he’d gotten there sooner, or better yet, had just killed the bastard when he first arrived.

“Shhh, someone will hear.” Ceridwen rushed to calm him down.

“I’ll kill him then. Or before. Somehow. Then you’ll be free, and he nor anyone else—”

She pressed her fingers lightly over his lips, silencing the spew of his thoughts. “No.” He held silent until she dropped her arm to her side.

“Is that all you know how to say?” A grin twitched at the corner of his mouth.

A blush creeped to her cheeks as she pursed her lips. Somewhere along the way, their roles had switched. “No,” she teased, mocking his line from weeks ago.

Drystan trailed a gloved hand across her cheek and down her neck, savoring the gooseflesh rising in its wake and the shiver that rolled down her body. He cupped the back of her neck, just under her elaborate updo, and this time, she did not look away or pull back.

“Ceridwen.”

He met her lips with his in a show of all the pent-up desire surging within him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning into him as if he might vanish and she could somehow hold him there. Though he’d long enjoyed music, he’d never made a study of it himself. Though there, locked in an embrace with the woman he loved, he suddenly understood how two distinct melodies could come together to form something even more magical.

Long after their kiss ended, she remained in his embrace, her cheek against his chest and her body pressed against his. She fit there. She belonged there. Every second he could hold her in his arms was a gift.

“What do you plan to do?” she asked eventually.

“Kill him. Avenge my family as well as your mother. Clear my name and escape if I can, though that may be too grand a dream.”

A soft smile pulled at her lips as she stared up at him. “Grand dreams are the best kind. The ones most likely to succeed.”

He tried to smile in return, but it faltered. “I don’t deserve it. The things I’ve done…”

“Because of your uncle. Because of the darkness he lured you into.”

“The blood is still on my hands. I committed the action, no matter the reason.” No amount vengeance could wipe that clean.

“We cannot change that. The past is done, even if we wish it otherwise. But we can build a better future,” she said. “You taught me that. I cannot bring Mother back, but I can move forward. I have, however hard.”

Whatever trials of the darkness she stared down, this woman persisted in spite of them. The wonder of it, the resilience of her spirit, was enviable, and so much stronger than his own.

“When you talk like that, I want to believe everything is possible,” he whispered.

“Then do. But we’ll need some help. Stay here a moment.”

“Wait.” He grabbed her arm. “I can’t involve you. It’s too dangerous. Nor anyone else. I’ve come this far alone. I’ll—”

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